Discouraged...however...

[Simone]

Hello to all of you who responded to my desperation. Thank you so much for your responses. They were all helpful. I am on day 15 and still trying. I have made some adjustments. 1)I am walking 2 miles in the morning and 2 miles in the early evening. 2)I am going to stay away from Splenda for a week and see if it makes a difference. I must say though, I used to eat Equal like it was nothing and never stalled before at all. I know many of you say don't use equal, but when I was first introduced to Atkins 6 years ago, I don't think I could have done so well without it. 3)I am not making any foods with cream. In Germany I can't find whipping cream, which is all I used to use. Now I am only using heavy cream. Maybe that makes a difference. I did stall before when I ate the low carb stuff in the stores, but I don't even do that. 4) I am going to try and eat less red meat and more chicken. I don't want to deprive myself, as I know this will lead to binging. I am more satisfied eating steak than chicken or fish. I am going to limit my red meat to 2 days a week.

I measured myself this afternoon. Seeing how big I am on paper was disheartening, but I did it. I just don't understand how I could remain in ketosis and not have lost any weight, yet you say I probably lost inches.

I continue to drink lots of water, at least 120oz daily. I am having a problem with constipation, but I am using the flax seed and psyllium husk pills. Not helping much. Have a Drs appt tomorrow to see what is going on with me. With the fiber and exercise I shoudl be regular.

This is what I ate today (it is midnight here).
B-2 eggs scrambled in 1/4 Tsp of butter
L-4 thin cut slices of beef ribs. Cut thin like a thick piece of bacon with little bones in it. A green salad with 2Tsp of almonds on top with ranch dressing.
D-5 grilled chicken wings, roasted red, green, yellow peppers on skewers

That was it. No snacks. I got hungry after my walk this morning and had cravings, but I didn't give in to them. I also got hungry about 30 min before dinner and just waited to be satisfied by my meal.

I intend to do much of the same tomorrow except I might just have a big salad at 1pm as I have an appt in the morning can't eat anything until after my tests. No breakfast for me.

If you can see anything wrong please let me know. I just wanted to say that the counting of calories is a big negative for me. That is one of the selling points for this diet. It really is a no brainer, and it works...as least it did in the past. For those who don't know. In Jan 1999 I weighed 338lbs and got down to 240 by June of the same year. In March/April 2000 I was 204lbs and so happy with myself. I managed to keep that off until Aug 2002 when I got pregnant with my youngest. I ate like a pig and thought..."I will just go on Atkins." Well this time it didn't work the same. So I am still struggling and trying to get back to where I was and actually reach my goal of 167lbs before I am 40 (2.5 years to go). It has been a long time since I have tried this WOE for weightloss versus wt. management and I have forgotten a lot. But I do remember it being easy and my being happy that I did. Now I am feeling like my own body is working against me and I am doomed for failure no matter what...Weight Watchers, NutriSystem, Jenny Craig, Physicians Weight Loss, Optifast, Slenderwrap, Grapefruit Diet, Prune Diet, you name it...I have tried it...but Atkins worked for me. I started to see my life through a whole different set of possibilities. I want that back. I really want that back.

I look forward to hearing from you and thank you so much for just listening to me. This board is a blessing for sure! ensive

[DebbietheHugBug]

Are you on induction? Almonds or any other kind of nuts are not allowed until the nut rung. If you don't have a copy of the 2002 or newer DANDR, go to the top of the forum the look over the acceptable food lists again.

Your menu otherwise looks ok. Make sure you are getting your 3 cups of veggies in. ha

[Simone]

Nuts...

this is day 15...I added the nuts as I recall reading. I thought you could ad 5 carbs weekly until you find your balance. I actually am continuing to remain under 20 carbs even with the nuts....

What is the deal with nuts anyway as long asI am under the max carb intake?

[FightingTheFight]

4) I am going to try and eat less red meat and more chicken.

Why?



And as for the nuts, how do you know you are not allergic?

[Moochiecat]

Re: Discouraged...however...

This is what I ate today (it is midnight here).
B-2 eggs scrambled in 1/4 Tsp of butter
L-4 thin cut slices of beef ribs. Cut thin like a thick piece of bacon with little bones in it. A green salad with 2Tsp of almonds on top with ranch dressing.
D-5 grilled chicken wings, roasted red, green, yellow peppers on skewers

That was it. No snacks. I got hungry after my walk this morning and had cravings, but I didn't give in to them. I also got hungry about 30 min before dinner and just waited to be satisfied by my meal.

Was this enough food for you? If you were hungry after your walk why didn't you have a legal snack? This is not a food deprivation type of eating plan, you can eat if you are hungry!

Are you using Fitday? Here's a link that can help you with it if you haven't used it before:

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/viewtopic.php?t=66107

What were your numbers like? It doesn't look like there's enough fat in there....why just a 1/4 tsp of butter?

Fitday will help you see how you are doing, so give it a shot, and see how it goes.

And by all means, eat if you are hungry!

[sadie147]

I agree with Moochie, If you were hungry you should have eaten. That is one of the great things about this woe...you should not deprive yourself.

I also think you're not eating enough....


As for the nuts: in OWL you add those carbs back by adding back 'rungs' the first rung is veggies, not nuts. You can check out the stickies in the OWL forums for help.

[tabekat]

give it more time

I ate like a pig and thought..."I will just go on Atkins

this particular comment really jumped out at me. i appreciate your honesty - i do believe it will serve you well and get you back on track.

sooner or later we all discover that our bodies can't be toyed with without consequence. they will respond at a different pace the 2nd, third or fourth time around.

we just need to be very loving to our bodies and allow them to have all the time they need to recover from more carb addiction.

atkins can heal us - but it is not a "quick fix, dump it down the road" sort of solution - it is simply a forever. but this kind of forever that can make life worth living.

good luck to you. stay true to the atkins principles that worked for you in the past. you will soon be ahead of where you started. :nod

[Iapetus999]

If you're hungry...then eat! Letting yourself feel hunger is counterproductive.
Also it sounds like you need more veggies...it will help with the bathroom issues. Maybe adding a spinach salad is all you need.

The other issue here is that you are older...and you regained the weight. Once you regain weight you've lost...it's harder to get rid of it. You've got an extra challenge here which means you need to be firm with yourself...and start a good exercise program. The walking is an excellent start but you make want to use some of your walking time for strength training.

Also be resolved to be on this plan the rest of your life. (2 years and counting for me)

[tickletussler]

I don't know if this is something you'd like to consider... but have you considered the KISS WOE? Ok, it is for those with yeast infections, but thing is, all of us can get yeast infections, but not all of us would stall because of it. Also I don' t think I am someone whose weightloss is affected by yeast infections, but I can say that it is possible occasionally an infection would cause problems for me.

Well, enough rambling from me. The best place to go to is the Candida & Yeast Infection forum

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/viewforum.php?f=85

Becky Sue - the forum hostess, if I remember right, had a lot of problems losing initially until she tried the KISS WOE. It may work for you, it may not, but here's another avenue to consider.

Cheers

[Simone]

confused

I stopped eating red meat (particulary ribeyes) becuase you guys suggested I was eating too many calories. I gave up the cream and the splenda. I am having a very difficult time becasue I am unsatisfied. Not really hungry, just deprived. Make sense?

I am eating salads, but can't find fresh spinach here yet. Shopping is a challenge. I use the US Military commisary for everything.

I am willing to do what ever it takes, perhaps not for the long haul though. I can be content with this WOE for the rest of my life, but not a life without steak and other goodies I want. That just can't work. It takes me back to Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig adn all that other nonesense that starved me into wt loss only to gain it right back. True. I gained back weight I lost on ATkins, but my Dr. said I had to eat for the baby which included carbs. Once I opened that floodgate again, that was all she wrote. I am not going to believe that I am old and have regressed therefore I cannot succeed at this. I simply MUST succeed at this or I am done with dreaming. I know that sounds dramatic, but that is my reality. This issue must be put to rest so that my life can be lived.

So tell me...treat me like a child who knows NOTHING....what do I do. If there is someone here who has experienced what I have/am, please direct me according to your success right down to the bare details of what you ate, how you felt, etc.

I am exercising daily. I think 4 miles is a lot to do everyday, and now I hear it isn't enough. My God. It is all I can do now. I live in a 4 story German home, so I am up and down stairs all day every day. I dont' have the desire or the time to lift weights. That is just not in the cards for me at this stage.

I don't want to be so negative but I feel like this is just a waste of time. It is just not fair when you follow all the rules and still fail. The one thing I am clinging to is that I didn't measure myself until yesterday. I am gong to wait 2 weeks and measure myself again to see if I have had even the slightest success. The strange thing is tha success breeds success. When I am doing well, nothing can make me eat outside of the "legal" foods. But not doing well breeds the feeling "what difference doesn't make anyway..." You knwo what I mean?

Anyway....that is how I am feeling today.

By the way, I had to have a CT scan today with iodine. I had to drink this huge bottle of this orange, disgusting liquid on an empty stomach. I later found otu that it was laced with Tang to make it taste better. I probably would have vomited if it tasted worse. I have no idea how many carbs was in that drink, so I decided to skip dinner tonight. I already skipped breakfast because I had to take the test on an empty stomach. I had chicken wings and celery for lunch. I pray that I am still in ketosis when I check tomorrow morning.

[Moochiecat]

4 miles is a lot to do in a day. If you are doing that plus going up and down stairs then don't worry, you're doing fine.

There's no reason whatsoever that you should be cutting out the red meat.

Re-read the book, and just follow the Rules of Induction, and eat the proper quantities from the Acceptable Foods list. Your caloric intake, and your fat/protein/carb ratios will fluctuate from day to day, but if you are following the diet as written, you will pretty much be at the correct levels of everything.

I had been on Atkins for a few weeks before I found www.fitday.com, and when I went back and entered in my foods from my written food journal, I was happy to see that everything was pretty much were it was supposed to be.

Dr. Atkins knew what he was setting up when he formulated the diet, and all we have to do is read, learn and do as he says. It's not complicated but when you are learning, it can seem tricky. Again, read the rules of Induction, and get familiar with the Acceptable Foods list, and those are the main things you need to know. :yes

Keep doing the exercise that you are doing, follow the Rules, stay within your limits, eat the required amount of veggies and a variety of meats, including beef and relax :yes

If you like, enter your foods into Fitday, to confirm that you are getting what you need...here's a link to help you out.

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/viewtopic.php?t=66107

At this point the fat/protien/carb ratio is what you need to look at, don't get too caught up in calories.

I have to have a CT scan in July, and I'm not worried about the gunk I have to drink...what I did the last time was just eat as usual (I didn't try and compensate for it or anything) and drank extra water to get that stuff out of my system.

[Iapetus999]

If you are doing 4 miles a day (running or walking?) then you definitely need more calories.

The problem with Atkins is that it isn't really one-size-fits-all like they try to portray it. If you read the later chapters of DANDR it describes how you need to really personalize it based on your activity level and carb tolerance.
The other problem is that anyone can give you advice on this forum...trust me: half the people have never read the book and just copy stuff they heard on other threads and other forums and have no idea what they're talking about.

My point with the age thing is that your carb level and rate of weight loss may be different now then x years ago. NOTHING IS IMPOSSIBLE.

I definitely think your next step is to enter your menu into http://fitday.com and see what comes up for ratios and calories.

[G-Mom]

Re: confused

I stopped eating red meat (particulary ribeyes) becuase you guys suggested I was eating too many calories. I gave up the cream and the splenda. I am having a very difficult time becasue I am unsatisfied. Not really hungry, just deprived. Make sense?

I am eating salads, but can't find fresh spinach here yet. Shopping is a challenge. I use the US Military commisary for everything.

I am willing to do what ever it takes, perhaps not for the long haul though. I can be content with this WOE for the rest of my life, but not a life without steak and other goodies I want. That just can't work. It takes me back to Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig adn all that other nonesense that starved me into wt loss only to gain it right back. True. I gained back weight I lost on ATkins, but my Dr. said I had to eat for the baby which included carbs. Once I opened that floodgate again, that was all she wrote. I am not going to believe that I am old and have regressed therefore I cannot succeed at this. I simply MUST succeed at this or I am done with dreaming. I know that sounds dramatic, but that is my reality. This issue must be put to rest so that my life can be lived.

So tell me...treat me like a child who knows NOTHING....what do I do. If there is someone here who has experienced what I have/am, please direct me according to your success right down to the bare details of what you ate, how you felt, etc.

I am exercising daily. I think 4 miles is a lot to do everyday, and now I hear it isn't enough. My God. It is all I can do now. I live in a 4 story German home, so I am up and down stairs all day every day. I dont' have the desire or the time to lift weights. That is just not in the cards for me at this stage.

I don't want to be so negative but I feel like this is just a waste of time. It is just not fair when you follow all the rules and still fail. The one thing I am clinging to is that I didn't measure myself until yesterday. I am gong to wait 2 weeks and measure myself again to see if I have had even the slightest success. The strange thing is tha success breeds success. When I am doing well, nothing can make me eat outside of the "legal" foods. But not doing well breeds the feeling "what difference doesn't make anyway..." You knwo what I mean?

Anyway....that is how I am feeling today.

By the way, I had to have a CT scan today with iodine. I had to drink this huge bottle of this orange, disgusting liquid on an empty stomach. I later found otu that it was laced with Tang to make it taste better. I probably would have vomited if it tasted worse. I have no idea how many carbs was in that drink, so I decided to skip dinner tonight. I already skipped breakfast because I had to take the test on an empty stomach. I had chicken wings and celery for lunch. I pray that I am still in ketosis when I check tomorrow morning.

Ok, Simone! Hon, please, please, PLEASE cheer up!! Last year, my body fought me tooth and nail. I would go several weeks without losing an ounce, then boom! I would lose 10 pounds! This is a journey, not a race. Your body is resistant to losing weight because you have forced it to lose its fat before, then let it have it back again. It won't be fooled again!!!

Now, I am the admitting type, so I will admit that I am the one who suggested to Simone that eating a lot of ribeyes might hinder her because they are really high in calories. Now that I see what she is eating in a day, I take that back! That advice was meant to be taken if you were eating a lot of food during the day (I guess I was thinking of myself several months ago-this was a problem for me). I do think that everyday, a 1000 calorie plus dinner is too much for the body to process, but a few times a week shouldn't harm.

Simone, I want you to remember this: On this program you won't go into starvation mode if you eat enough to satisfy you (that means no hunger, you!) AND you eat enough protein. If your muscles are getting enough protein, your body will not feel the need to steal energy from them, and will burn fat like it's supposed to while in ketosis.

I am sorry to have misled you. If beef makes you happy and keeps you on track, then by all means eat it. Beef is awesome. I would only eat ribeyes a couple times per week and lower calorie steaks (not super low, just a bit lower--don't you all throw tomatoes at me!) the other days.

Also, try adding more of the "good" fats like frying chicken tenders in olive oil, adding avocado to your salad, etc. Remember fat is good! Also, spread your carbs out throughout the day. This is critical, because eating most of your carbs for the day at one sitting can and will cause a spike in insulin (the fat-storing hormone--shudder--), and that is the last thing we want.

Lastly, you may want to try weight training, or at the very least, floor exercises that use free weights and your own body's weight as resistance. This is important because you will burn more fat with more muscle and keep it off. I feel weight training is just slightly more important for fat loss than aerobic exercise, because gaining muscle is so vitally important for maintenance.

Anyway, please don't get down on yourself, you are doing great! Please PM me if you need me, I will always respond, ok? :hug :hug